


Ghost Eyes

by CatSaucEe



Category: Danny Phantom
Genre: But half the story is Danny being a cinnamon bun, Danny Fenton Can See Ghosts, Danny Fenton and Ember McLain Friendship, Danny makes friends with ghosts, Danny still becomes a phantom, Ember McLain is a cool ghost, Gen, He's cool, I can legally say that because I'm Bi, I mean come on, Implied/Referenced Character Death, Johnny 13 is.... Johnny 13, Skulker needs time in the shame corner, Some Ghosts - Freeform, Team Phantom Friendship, Young Danny Fenton, his sass comes after, implied Bisexual Sam Manson, its more of ghosts explaining how they died, just have fun, mentioned Ember McLain/Skulker, other ghosts mentioned - Freeform, pretty sure Skulker still wants a halfa pelt, she radiates Bi energy, slight angst...?
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-24
Updated: 2020-11-24
Packaged: 2021-03-10 05:29:15
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 8,878
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27628193
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CatSaucEe/pseuds/CatSaucEe
Summary: Danny notes her mostly black attire, save for a denim jacket that looks burnt and charred. Her hands are a terrible charcoal black against her unnaturally ghostly pale skin and it makes Danny internally wince.The ghost blinks at Danny once, and then furrows her brows in confusion."You can see me?"Danny bobs his head a little in a nod. "I can see ghosts."-Little Danny Fenton comes to a realization that maybe, just maybe, he's a little too different from the other kids. Because while kids have regular human eyes, he has ghost eyes.
Comments: 12
Kudos: 178





	Ghost Eyes

* * *

It starts when he is just shy of his 1st birthday, when Jack and Maddie Fenton just can't seem to understand why their little boy would always be constantly crying in the middle of the night. Jazz had also done that, but hers wasn't as intense as Danny's. While Jazz back then would often be satiated after a lullaby, or a diaper change, or on the rare occasion, bottle feeding, no matter what the two did, Danny would often bawl and bawl and bawl until he tired himself out.

They tried seeking help from the doctors and baby professionals, but despite the clean bill of health, suggestions ranging from putting on white noises in the background or routines that usually worked on babies before bed, he would always, at 3am in the night, begin his nightly howling. It honestly worried Jack and Maddie, even scaring them. Because no matter how much they attempted to get his attention with songs or coos, Danny would fix his teary eyes on the corner of his room, never moving and looking absolutely frightened, although nothing was there.

Thank God, when Danny was a month away from his 2nd birthday, he stopped crying at night, and that was a huge relief to them. Night owls, as they were, constantly working hours on new ghost inventions, still need their sleep to ensure that they still function.

And then when Danny turned 3, he had an imaginary friend. 'Amelia' was her name and she liked apples and giraffes, words Jack and Maddie knew by heart because Danny would constantly talk about her. He'd always sneak apples into his room, and demand they buy any giraffe themed item he ever laid his eyes on because Amelia would like it, though honestly they both felt that it was Danny's way of getting more toys.

They both often joked to themselves that there was a ghost in the house, but were assured that there were none when the Fentons installed an anti ghost shield around the house and had checked the house for any ghosts before they moved in.

(If Maddie and Jack had dug any deeper, they would have realized the previous tenants of the house had a girl. A sad story really. She couldn't make it long enough to see her 4th birthday, to see the giraffes at the zoo her mother promised she'd take her to celebrate. The mother often lamented about it, mourned that her illness took her too soon in her sleep. And when her grief got too great, she sold the house and left its memories behind.)

Just like when Danny used to cry obsessively, he no longer talked about his imaginary friend when they brought him to the zoo for his 4th birthday. That day, he only stared at the old toy giraffe when they got back home, hugged it to sleep, and ever since then, allowed the giraffe to occupy the top of his bedframe.

-

At the age of 5, little Danny Fenton starts to understand that he is a little different from the other kids.

When he often hung out with the other kids in his daily wanderings (of course, with permission from his parents) they would give him looks because of something he would say. He really doesn't know what's wrong, because it'd be just people he mentions. Some kid wants to play with them and when Danny asks, no one knows what or who he's talking about ("They're right there! Don't be mean!"). A conversation he would have with an old lady or the occasional adult who often smiled when he approached them because they looked a little sad whenever he saw them, and talking to them always made them better ("You can't say they're nobody, that's rude....."). A dog or cat they would almost accidentally run into ("Watch where you're going! You almost stepped on its tail!")

Danny had pushed Dash out of the way of a cat he didn't see coming and that earned him a bruised eye, and from then on, the ire of one Dash Baxter.

He doesn't know why the kids would suddenly avoid him one day, or call him freak or weirdo. By the time he starts preschool, all the kids don't really want to play with him. All except Tucker, who recently moved into Amity Park, and Danny's content with hanging out with his new friend, who enjoys fiddling with devices and had gotten into trouble with for attempting to take apart the school's landline telephone.

One day, when Danny points to a rather large canine cat mix roaming the park and laughing at how ridiculous it was attempting to chase away the birds of the park, Tucker gives him the same look the other kids often give him when he says something weird, and he feels a lurch in his gut and a lump crawling up his throat.

From then on, Danny tries his best not to say something weird, because he really doesn't want to freak his friend out and lose him. He can't stand the thought of losing a friend who enjoys playing video games with him and listening to him rattle on about stars. He can't lose him.

-

By the time Danny realizes that he can see ghosts, he's 6 and he almost never talks about it to anyone. Especially his parents.

While he can be clumsy at times, and on occasion, can't seem to pick up certain social cues, he's not dumb. Kids that can remember and name the constellations in the night sky at his age are not dumb. His parents and Jazz told him so.

He knows that his parents are ghost hunters. While Jazz constantly disputes the fact and often complains about their delusional aspirations, Danny knows better, because he has ghost eyes, and if his parents knew, he doesn't want to know what they would do to his ghostly neighbors and acquaintances if his parents got their hands on them. With all those intimidating guns and sharp tools he often finds when he manages a peek in their basement lab, he doesn't want to dwell on that. So for the sake of avoiding any sort of violent situation, he keeps mum about his ghostly secret.

Looking back, he can't seem to figure out how he couldn't piece together that the decapitated humans and weird mutated creatures were ghosts. Then again, he had grown up with them all his life, so much so it became normal to him. 

He had gotten really good at pretending he doesn't see ghosts whenever he is around people. He'd mostly turn the other way when he encounters any sort of entities. However, when he thinks no one is looking, he often gives a smile or a wave to the unusual inhabitants. Because he knows some of these ghosts who have been staying in Amity Park for quite some time, who often smile back in return or give him a wave before going about their ghostly business.

When his sister is in school and his parents are busy (which is more often than not.....often.... these days) or when he isn't hanging out with Tucker, he would instead venture around the neighborhood to keep track of the ghosts. He had made it his main mission to at least understand them, and it makes him feel like he's doing something important, even if its just checking to see if Maisy the Decapitated Cat was still chasing down that darned rat that she never seemed to be able to catch with the absence of a jaw. He would have helped her if the idea of holding a sewer rat wasn't so unappealing.

Sometimes, he comes across a ghost that asks him for help, and those afternoons are often spent completing said tasks. He has had a ghost asking him to help them find a ring in a river (which he is proud to say, took him till sundown to find and the owner had been incredibly satisfied). Another asked him to deliver a message to a family further down Amity Park (He managed to write it on paper in his best cursive handwriting, sealing it up with the best envelope he had gotten on hand, and left it at the doorstep for the family) and on one unusual day, find a rare butterfly in Amity Park (the ghost seemed like a butterfly enthusiast as he talked to Danny about the various butterflies they encountered while on their one week hunt for said elusive butterfly)

Often when he manages to fulfil their requests, he never does see them again, but he can't seem to be upset about it, though he misses them sometimes. They are more often much more interesting than the still alive residents.

-

So when on one fine cloudy day, Danny has wandered out and about the quieter parts of Amity, he is quick to realize that the ghost he stumbles upon is new to Amity Park.

The only reason the ghost has captured his attention so well is because it's the only ghost that has fire for hair, and that they are kicking aggressively at the trash in the back alleyway.

Throughout the years, Danny has learnt that not all ghosts are as friendly, and those ghosts mostly prefer to be left alone. One notable experience has left him with a faded scar on his elbow. With that in mind, Danny makes his shoes scuff the gravel floor, making noises to alert the ghost that someone is here, so as to not startle them.

When the ghost turns to look at him with a startled look, Danny tries make himself as non-intimidating as a seven year old can, and holds up a hand with a shy wave.

"Hi..."

Danny notes her mostly disheveled black attire, save for a denim jacket that looks burnt and charred. Her hands are a terrible charcoal black against her unnaturally ghostly pale skin and it makes Danny internally wince.

The ghost blinks at Danny once, and then furrows her brows in confusion. 

"You can see me?"

Danny bobs his head a little in a nod. "I can see ghosts."

The fire-haired ghost widens her eyes and usually, this is when the ghosts Danny introduces himself to always inquire about his ability to see ghosts (and then ask him for help). But after a few seconds, the ghost lets out a sad laugh, and sinks to the ground with a heavy thud, one hand clenching on to an electric guitar.

"Jesus-....." The ghost mutters, and she rubs the bridge of her nose, "God.... I'm really dead. And now I'm a fu-....freakin' ghost......"

Danny hasn't really dealt with anyone grieving, much less a ghost fresh from death. Most of the residents in Amity Park had already come to terms with their death, having been ghosts for some time, and probably way back when Danny was born. The new ones are more often ghosts dropping by Amity Park. So he's a little unsure about what to say. He shuffles his feet a little and he fiddles his fingers, a Fenton trait that he had picked up on. 

Quietly, he walks closer to the ghost, and takes a seat beside her, ignoring the dirty floor. "Sorry....." He whispers, and the ghost turns her head to look at Danny, "Do you.... Wanna talk about it?" 

The question doesn't elicit a positive response, evident by the way the ghost clenches her fingers, and her lips drawing close to a snarl. "Don't wanna talk about it, punk," the ghost answers, and the dark tone in her voice makes Danny tense, and he almost lets out a squeak if not for him biting his lips. "S-sorry..." Danny mumbles quickly because he would rather not get on the bad side of a ghost with flaming hair. 

The increased tension leads to an awkward silence hanging in the air, until she lets out a heavy sigh.

"It's not-" she starts, and the hurt in her eyes overtake anger, "I just.... Don't want to think about it.... Not now." Her pained voice makes Danny feel a heavy guilt pooling in his tummy.

"I'm sorry...."

The ghost chuckles dryly and quirks a brow at him, and Danny flushes under her scrutiny. "You're a weird kid, Babypop."

Danny frowns. "What's a 'Babypop'?"

The ghost shrugs. "You just look like a 'Babypop'."

While Danny pouts to himself at being called a 'baby' despite having had his seventh birthday just a month ago, the ghost holds out a hand to him. "Ember McLain. What's your name kid?"

"Danny," he replies and accepts the hand, and then quickly adds, "Fenton." Only because Ember had given him her surname as well.

"Danny huh?" Ember quirks her lip a little, "Nice meeting you..... Though we probably could've met in a better circumstance." Her face falls a little and her eyes go back to staring her clenched, burnt hand on her thigh.

Danny allows the quiet to once again take over, observing the ghost. He knows most ghosts he comes across rarely ever talk about their deaths, and much prefer a lighter conversation. So he decides that he can maybe distract Ember with another topic. Plus, he is quite curious about the guitar in hand.

"Do you play guitar?" Danny asks, looking at the electric guitar in her hand. As if just realizing she was holding one, Ember turns her head to stare at her guitar. "Oh this? I mean, yeah I play. It's just, this guitar isn't really....mine?" She moves the electric guitar over her lap and places her fingers to play with practiced ease. "I mean it looks like my guitar but.... She feels different. Though I can't complain, the afterlife's kind enough to give me a guitar. I haven't gotten name for this one yet. She doesn't feel like my old Spitfire."

Danny scrunches his nose, "You name your guitar?"

Ember just returns an unimpressed look. "Don't you name your toys?"

"......... Not fair," Danny pouts with a blush and Ember huffs a laugh. Danny had only picked up the toy naming habit from a girl who had named the soft toy giraffe in his room 'Spots'.

Ember begins strumming a few chords, and despite the lack of amps, it surprisingly produces the sounds of an electric guitar instead of stunted strings. Danny can't help but watch with a little bit of fascination, having never really seeing or hearing one up close.

"Wanna hear a song?" Ember asks, "It's a personal work in progress, so don't judge it. Normally I would have the song sheet somewhere." Though she pouts at the last part, she smiles when Danny nods eagerly.

The alleyway fills with the soft, electric buzz of single strung chords, not as intense as Danny recalls those songs with electric guitars that Tucker lets him listen to with his music player. The strumming is then accompanied by Ember's soft singing, following the song to a perfect pitch. And her voice begs its listener to remember her.

By the end of her last verse, Danny is absolutely enamored.

"You don't actually get the song do you?" Ember chuckles, resting the guitar flat on her lap. "Some of it," Danny admits. "But you have a very nice voice. I especially like 'dead trees, in cold December'," he crosses his arms in nods solemnly, "very spooky."

Danny finds pride in himself when he gets the fire-y ghost to laugh. Ember smiles widely at him with an amused grin and gives him a light punch to his shoulder. "Totally the vibe I was going for. 'Preciate the feedback."

Ember's face turns forlorn, and she lets out a small sigh, "You know I used to take gigs at bars? I was finally going to make it big at this really famous bar, and this song was supposed to be my debut! People would finally get to know Ember McClain!.... And now its just..... I don't know...."

Danny quite likes this ghost very much. She hasn't hurt him once, and she even gave Danny a little show, even if he was the only audience. And she is absolutely cool, so Danny wants to help her very much. "Is there anything I can do to help you?"

The stare Ember fixes on him is at first, surprised, sad and a little scared, but as the words register, her eyes widen with a hint of honest hope.

"Just..... I just want one thing," Ember whispers, like if she said it any louder, any faster, it would be gone with the wind, broken. "Promise me, promise that you'll remember me?"

Danny's not one to make promises, because promises, he learns, are very very important. But when a Fenton makes a promise, they see it through to the very end. "I promise," Danny answers. Then to ensure he means it, and that this is a promise that he absolutely does not intend to break, he holds out a pinkie and adds, even more determined, "Pinkie Promise!"

The look he has on must be very funny, because Ember snorts (which he's not upset about) and curls her own pinkie to his, "You sure Babypop?" Danny tightens his own pinkie a smidge and gives Ember on big nod in affirmation. "You're Ember McLain!" Danny announces, "You have the coolest looking hair I have ever seen, the coolest looking guitar, and you play the nicest music ever! You will not be forgotten!"

Ember McLain, despite her tears, breaks into a genuine smile and she rubs the tears away. Danny in turn smiles as Ember ruffles his hair like Jazz would whenever they would tease each other.

"Thanks, you dork."

-

Throughout the years leading up to high school, he meets plenty more memorable ghosts. Apparently, as he learns, ghost activity in Amity Park has attracted more ghosts, though he is unsure of the logic. Though he speculates the increase use of ectoplasm by his parents to be a key factor in the increased ghost population.

Ember had left Amity a week after that day, saying something about figuring out herself. But Danny thinks that it wouldn't be the last he'd see of her.

There was Johnny 13 (he had laughed a little when the ghost insisted '13' was in fact, a name) and he often rode in his motorcycle with an inhabitant named 'Shadow'. Shadow always enjoyed belly(?) rubs and messing with him, often tugging on his hair or poking him, but Danny didn't mind. Johnny often mentioned Kitty, his girlfriend that couldn't exit the Ghost Zone (Which was as it turns out, where ghosts live, like a world in a world. If his parents knew, they would surely flip). When Danny asked if he could help, Johnny only ever shrugged, saying something about how Kitty wouldn't like being stuck in a kid boy body.

Desiree only ever dropped by Amity once, and even then, she was memorable, ghostly form and all. She had asked Danny what he wished for when she realized he could see her. He naively wished for plenty of things, from cool rocket ships to video games and comic books. But he soon realized that Desiree had used his wishes to grow stronger, and when he found out that Desiree had begun to wreck some havoc near Amity's Nasty Burger, he had cried out that he wished everything back to normal and that she leave Amity Park alone.

That had been a wild day, and if anyone speculated about what happened to the half wrecked Nasty Burger, only Danny would know what actually went down. At least they finally gave Nasty Burger the renovation it was promised. On the downside, it had sparked inspiration in a certain Wes Weston to begin his foray into ghost theory.

The Box ghost showed up in an abandoned factory Danny was exploring, and while he at first attempted to scare Danny, going "OOOOO, I'M THE BOX GHOOSSTT!~", it ended with Danny assuring the ghost that he would help him find a special box, which the Box Ghost reiterates for the 13th time, was most special box in the universe, and the box ghost left Danny alone.

When Danny began his first year in Casper High, he was quick to notice that the school lunches had been prepared by a ghost. Lunch Lady, she had introduced, when he snuck in the cafeteria kitchen while Tucker and Sam, the newest addition to their group had been going off about something. The Lunch Lady had offered him a cookie, and a pat on his head much to his embarrassment. But other than that, she didn't seem to pose any sort of harm, even though she got a little heated when she started complaining about pure vegetable diets. And Danny quite liked the lunches either way, so he allowed the Lunch Lady to continue her unpaid work, unbeknownst to anyone.

In those years, he manages to pick up on ghost etiquette (Don't prod a ghost on how they died, they will tell you when they want to. Don't mock a ghosts' obsession, its an obsession for a reason. And most importantly, never ever so much as think about touching a ghost core, it is the most fragile thing about ghosts and a cardinal sin if you break it). He also picks up little bit of ghost speak from the ghosts. If a ghost is willing to indulge him, they would answer his questions on the Ghost Zone, ghosts and the supernatural. If Danny was going to live a life with ghosts, he might as learn how to be polite around them.

Danny, as he comes to realize, is starting to enjoy hanging out with ghosts. He manages to balance school life, his friends, family, and his ghostly escapades. And as he meets more ghosts, whether it be malevolent or kind, or minding their own business, he finds himself getting used to them, and has long since embraced his little secret. He thinks he can get used to this.

And then the portal accident happens.

-

Becoming Danny Phantom is a surreal experience, because where he used to be the one observing ghosts, he is now, one himself, albeit half ghost.

He technically didn't die, thankfully. And yet he is somewhat dead. Neither human nor ghost, or both human and ghost. An entirely new species and sometimes thinking about it sends him into spiral.

To make things worse, he has become the one thing his parents hunt, and now, with his terrible control of his newly acquired ghostly powers, he has to figure out how to ensure he won't get sliced into salami by his parents. And with every other waking day, he gets a little bit more terrified to be around his parents. It's not their fault though, really. They still love him.....at least until he tells them the truth.

Oh well, at least now Amity Park can actually see the ghosts now.

The portal accident had not only given Danny new ghostly powers, but had in addition, enhanced his already born ability to see ghosts. Combined with his ghost sense, he had grown an innate ability to not only pinpoint the location of said ghost, but was also able to recognize said ghost, having proven itself when Skulker showed up multiple times for his skin. And with every new day, his powers grow stronger, and much more reliant (thankfully).

(When Jazz found out much much later, with the knowledge of his developed born ability, they had popularized a theory between them that Danny had been exposed in a highly ectoplasmic environment for a long time before he was born, and probably mutated him and gave him the ability to see ghosts. But that was later.)

The upsides to having his strange ghostly talent before becoming Phantom was that at least he knew the ghosts, and through them, at least learnt some decent manners when the new ghosts started appearing out of the portals. Sure, most of them much rather prefer talking with their fists and weird powers, especially when Danny disliked them attempting world domination. But ghosts like Technus, Dora and Pointdexter tend to listen to him with just enough conviction (and very very tempting alternative compromises). So he had done very well to avoid accidentally angering the ghosts he comes across even further than he necessarily has to.

Of course, with the now open and functioning ghost portal in his basement, the ghosts had gotten stronger. He honestly hadn't realized back then just how big of a situation it was until he got the first ever taste of it a week after the portal accident, when Sam had gone and changed the menu to an all vegetable diet.

He really didn't want to have to fight the Lunch Lady, especially since she had been really nice to him. But obsessions were obsessions, and fighting her was the only way to snap her out of it, or she would have hurt his friends and other people. Though when the Lunch Lady finally calmed down after a hard knockout, Danny had apologized profusely to her much to the confusion of Sam and Tucker, and assure her that the menu would go back to how it originally was much to the chagrin of Sam (and the delight of Tucker).

He had then admitted to his friends that he could see ghosts before the portal accident. Tucker had responded with the realization of all those times he recalled Danny seeing or talking to the air before he stopped completely ("Holy shit Danny, you mean to tell me that the lady you kept talking about with the missing arms was real and not some creepy story you made up to spook me???").

Sam had responded with a curt, "That's freaky." And years of being on the receiving end of the 'freak' stick had made Danny a little defensive. He had shot Sam a glare without meaning to and grumbled, "Well it was better than being a jerk." He felt a little guilty when Sam gave him a look.

But where before he could still be a normal human being, being Phantom had cemented the fact that he was a freak with no turning back.

-

When Tucker had introduced Amity's latest growing interest in a new pop idol to them, Danny was quick to point out, much to his surprise and joy, that he knew Ember McLain, and that she was indeed a ghost.

He didn't need his ghost sense to tell him that Ember had arrived at Amity Park. His core had already felt the presence of hers, and it was quite a surprise for him, that somehow his core could point her out.

After school, Danny quickly left to find an empty spot, allowing his transformation to take over, and with Tucker's desperate plea and Sam's insistence that she tag along least the two of them get into any sort of trouble, Danny held them by the hands and soared, his core guiding them to where Ember McLain is.

They soon spot a mini SUV parked in an obscure area North of Amity Park, away from the public eye. Danny had to blink twice to assure himself that the ghost sitting on the roof of the vehicle was indeed Ember McLain, because she had looked drastically different from when he had last seen her.

Instead of pale skin, her body glowed a strange tint of blue. Her wild, flaming hair had been tied up and her face was now decorated with a punk style makeup, stylish mascara, lipstick and all that would've made Sam jealous and impressed. Long gone was her tattered clothes and jacket, but instead a bold black outfit and tasteful skull-designed combat boots, along with a pair of black gloves that went over her elbow, covering up the burns on her arms. She looked much more sharper and confident despite the slight hunch while she sat and her casual demeanor without the presence of fans to impress.

When Danny carefully lands his friends on the ground, Ember is immediately alerted to the new arrivals, and looks up from her guitar, staring sharply at Danny with a tension to her shoulders.

"Fans...?" Ember asks, and while Sam rolls her eyes, Tucker is all too glad to hold up an Ember album and nods eagerly. "A huge fan! Could you please sign this?" Tucker practically squeaks.

Ember considers the three of them for a while, before hopping down from the top of the SUV, unaware that the three had already known that she was a ghost and could float. She fishes out a marker from her pocket, pops the cap off and signs the album flawlessly, her name in sharp lines and a decorative flame lineart around it to complete the signature.

Once Tucker seems pleased, hugging the album with a dreamy sigh, Ember turns her attention at Danny, who is still Phantom, and she eyes him warily, "And what's a ghost doing here?" 

Danny can't seem to be a little bit disappointed that Ember doesn't recognize him in his ghost form, rather finding it a little amusing as he grins a little, "Come on, I can't be that unrecognizable..... Was sort of hoping a ghost could recognize a ghost." He doesn't miss the way Ember bristles at being ousted as a ghost in front of two humans, but he is quick to put both hands up as a peaceful gesture. And before Ember could so much as make a threat, Phantom transforms back to Fenton and smiles. "Hard to forget a ghost with the coolest looking hair and guitar you know."

The moment Ember recognizes Danny, her face hilariously morphs into an amalgamation of different emotions and the electric guitar falls onto the grass from her loosened grip.

"Babypop?!"

Danny laughs unabashedly and is immediately attacked by the greatest head noogie of all time, and an arm locked around his neck with no escape.

"Holy shit!" Ember belatedly squeals, "It's you!! What are you now? 13, 14? You've grown a heck lotta taller! Still a scrawny punk, but damn Danny! No wonder I couldn't recognize you!" And then Ember pauses, and she ceases her violent affection and steps back to look at Danny with a sort of horrified and serious look. "Did you fucking die?"

The look in her eyes are haunted and Danny is immediately quick to shoot the thought down. "I didn't!! Well-... I mean, technically...?" Danny fumbles with the words and shrugs lamely, "It's..... Kind of a long story. I'm half human and half ghost....."

Ember blinks at him for a hot second, before finally whispering a soft, "Damn."

And then she slaps a hand on his shoulder and gives him a serious look that reminds him of Jazz when she is about to give him some sage advice. "Know a guy in the ghost zone that's also a halfa, kind of an old, crummy hoot," she says and that has Danny raising his brows, "An honest to god asshole, absolutely hate his guts. So I trust that you will not turn into an asshole yourself."

Danny can't help but be curious about the knowledge of another halfa, but he plays along for Ember's sake and holds a hand up in a solemn vow, "You have my word."

A fake cough from Sam draws the attention of the halfa and the ghost back to their human spectators. Tucker had turned his fawning from the signed album to Ember, while Sam has her arms crossed and her eyebrow raised in question. Danny flusters a little and quickly gestures to his friends, "Oh! Right, sorry. These are my friends, Sam and Tucker. They know I'm a halfa and I've told them about you being a ghost. But they won't tell anyone about it. They're good at keeping secrets." He says the last line with a wink that has Ember raising a brow.

While Tucker had nodded enthusiastically, Sam only narrows a glare at Ember. "Unless you're thinking about causing trouble here..." Sam hisses slightly. Danny couldn't really blame her, the last few ghost attacks had been rather harrowing.

Ember gives Sam a once over from head to toe, and grins. "Goth girl's got spunk," Ember muses and she turns to Danny with a satisfied grin, "she's a keeper."

That got both Sam and Danny to blush a deep red while Danny sputters, ignoring Tuckers outburst of laughter. "She's just a good friend! And don't think I don't see you avoiding the subject. I know you've been taking advantage of your ghost powers." When Ember frowns at him, Danny continues. "I did a little research. No one rises to fame that fast. And your fan base is rather possessive of your integrity, it's kind of creepy. Tucker here is one fantastic example."

Tucker's indignant 'Hey!' goes ignored in the background while Ember sighs, picking her electric guitar from the ground. "I'm only being honest with you because it's you, Babypop. But yeah, I might have cheated a little," Ember shrugs and fiddles with the knob of the guitar, which Danny now notices has gone through considerable upgrading. "I did a little bit of mind control here and there.... Okay, maybe mostly my concerts," Ember furrows her brows and scowls slightly, "I had to okay? It was the only way I could go up the charts! It's the only way I get remembered. Amity Park's gonna be my last stop, and after tomorrow night, the whole of America's gonna know Ember McLain."

She eases her frown and looks at Danny with desperate eyes. "Come on, Babypop. You gotta give me this. You know how it is....."

Sam scrunches her nose in a displeased way. "No way," Sam huffs. "We're not gonna let ghosts go around Amity Park hurting people on our watch." Tucker, in a rare moment, inclines his head in agreement to Sam. "As much as you're cool Ember, I seriously don't wanna know what mind control feels like..... Please?"

Danny sighs heavily and combs a hand through his hair. "I get it Ember, I really do. But Sam's right, that's hurting people, even if it's not physically. And Amity Park's my territory now, so the people are under my protection. I can't let you hurt them." Before Ember could protest, Danny places a hand on her shoulder and gives her a soft smile, "Besides, you don't need mind control for people to like you. Your songs are beautiful, and people already love you for that, even without ghostly powers."

Ember kicks the grass under the feet and glares at Danny without any sort of malice, "Dammit.... You still have a way with words punk."

Danny chuckles heartedly. "Tell you what Ember. Of course you can still play tomorrow night. Lots of people in Amity Park are dying to see you. But it'd just be a regular concert. No ghost powers, mind control or anything like that. It's just Ember McLain on stage going off in a big bang for her tour finale. I really don't wanna have to kick your butt."

With a gwuaff, Ember punches Danny on the back and gives him an offended look, though its ire is broken by the large smile Ember is wearing. "How dare you assume you can kick my ass! I'll have you know I'll gladly beat you in a one on one any other day!" 

The two of them laugh themselves silly, contagious enough that Sam breaks into a small smile herself, but Ember is quick to sober up as she considers Danny's offer. "Alright," Ember sighs, hands on her hips, "just cuz' Amity's your territory and I respect ya. But don't think it'll stop the other ghosts from doing god knows what around here. I've heard from the grapevine that Skulker's been going around looking for a certain new pelt to hang on his wall, so I'll keep him in check for ya whenever I'm around."

The three teens stare at Ember in surprise. "You know Skulker?" Sam is the first to ask and Ember shrugs. "He's my boyfriend."

Their surprise quickly morphs in stunned silence. Danny is close to having a mind reel.

"Just what on earth have you been up to?"

Ember curls her lips in amusement. "We got a lot of catching up to do, Babypop."

-

The day of Ember's performance was to be on a Friday night, and with the students of Casper high being released early on said Fridays, Danny and his friends decided to drop by Ember's concert setup to help out.

She didn't really need help to be quite honest. She was afterall, a ghost with her own way of management. But she was happy enough to let them set up some of the amps, and Tucker, being the biggest fan of both Ember and all things technological, was willing to listen to Ember explain about the logistics behind her setup. The three of them accompanied Ember through the day as Ember talked about her travels, being a ghost, and answering their questions until the night came for Ember to perform.

Despite the lack of mind control powers, Ember's concert had proven to be a raging success amongst the residents of Amity Park, proving Danny's prediction. Though Danny can't quite say if the older citizens were tolerant of the late night ruckus of rock music.

Ember's fans, having never given up their loyalty and love for her music, spent the night chanting her name, waving glow sticks in the night. Sam admitted that Ember's music had grown on her, if only to match her goth aesthetic. 

Danny had jokingly asked if she was developing a crush on Ember. Sam responded with a heavy punch to the shoulder (the poor abused shoulder) and swearing that she was not and never will be a necrophiliac despite the blush, and Danny laughed in kind.

Even fans of the ghostly kind showed up. It seems that Ember had made a name for herself in the ghost zone as well (the ghost zone was rather sparse in entertainment department). Johnny 13 had showed up with his motorcycle and Danny had to squeeze his way through the crowd to talk with him, which of course also led with him revealing that he was a half ghost, and subsequently a warning against messing with or harming anyone. Though Johnny had made no promises against causing trouble here and there, he did accept Danny's offer to find an alternative solution to find a way for Kitty to leave the ghost zone. And before Danny wandered off, Johnny had promised a tour of the zone if Danny had the time.

Danny had also managed to bump into Skulker, who was decked out in a fully clothed disguised that compromised of a jacket and cap most likely requested by his girlfriend for the sake of Danny. Skulker, upon recognizing Danny, had reached out both his hands towards Danny to begin their chase, until a studded decorated hair-tie thwacked Skulker in the head. Both had turned to the source to find Ember, ponytail loose and now flaming wildly as the crowd went wild, and Ember gave Skulker a pointed glare of 'I'm watching you'. Needless to say, Skulker had looked thoroughly disappointed and begrudgingly let Danny go as he quickly left to rejoin his friends.

Some of Amity's local ghost residents also joined in on the crowd, though inconspicuous. The Lunch Lady floated by to see what the fuss was about, Technus appeared as well for a few moments, just to marvel at the technologies before disappearing without anyone but Danny noticing. The ghosts often loved to cause a little bit of trouble, but they knew better than to mess with another ghost's plans, even if it was a performance.

True to Ember fashion, the last song ended with a big bang as the crowd screamed in exhilaration. The smile on Ember's face was filled with unfiltered joy and pride, as she strummed her final chord, and cheered "Goodnight Amity Park!!!" while the curtains closed in dramatic fashion. 

Fans left the concert satisfied, completely unaware that their idol was of a ghostly kind. Danny's friends stuck around for a little while to discuss about Ember's songs and ghosts before they had to go their separate ways (not before asking Danny to give Ember their congratulations on a successful night). And when finally, no one was around, Danny transforms into his ghost half and floats off to find the flaming-haired girl.

"That was a killer performance," Danny congratulates as he settles on the top of the metal structure keeping the stage up, Ember next to him and looking out at Amity Park. He could see Johnny having a conversation with Skulker, though it seems to be more of an insult exchange with the way Skulker's face contorts into a hilarious growing rage. "Of course, I mean figuratively," Danny adds, "an actual killer performance would not be the greatest. You've made a new fan out of Sam, and that's like, an achievement."

Ember chuckles and relaxes with Danny, both hands resting on the metal bars and supporting her body as the two stare off, taking in Amity Park in its nighttime.

"So," Ember starts, "a halfa."

Danny shrugs and shifts, resting his arms on his thighs and leaning forward. "Half ghost.... I er..... Was electrocuted. In a ghost portal. Complicated science."

Ember whistles deeply, and clicks her tongue, "Yikes. You didn't have to tell me you know...." Danny shrugs and smiles softly, "I know," And it's not like Danny doesn't know what he's talking about. His death, despite having made it out half alive, was a ghost's greatest secret. When a ghost shares that with another, it means essentially, "I trust you."

She busies her fingers on the strings of the electric guitar, strumming a few chords that easily fill the silence between them. "You're a weird kid, Babypop," Ember chuckles. She takes a breath. "I died in a fire."

Though Danny doesn't have his head turned to Ember, he listens and hangs on to every word Ember is about to share, because this is important to her. "It was sorta stupid really. Some boy I liked left me. Actually found out he cheated on me. So I came back home, and was just so upset I crashed on the bed. I-..... I forgot the stove fire and next thing I know I was-...I.... I burnt to a fucking crisp."

Ember lets out a shaky breath and the notes warble a little from her shaking hands. "The worst thing was, that when I died, no one would remember me. I had no family, I had no friends, I had no name for myself. Just... a washed out teen with a shitbag life, trying so hard to scarp by, only to end up being the girl that died in a fire in the next morning's newspaper. And I clung onto that. I didn't want to be forgotten and well.... Here I am."

Danny couldn't imagine it, being forgotten just like that. He sucks in a breath and mourns a life taken before it even began the first step to a dream. "I'm so sorry," Danny mutters.

"S' okay, I mean, I managed one way or another..." Ember sighs. "But back then, when I came to, I was angry," she turns and gives Danny an amused grin, "but then you showed up. I gotta ask, how'd a kid like you have zero self preservation skills? Don't think I didn't notice the scars. Did your mommy never teach you not to talk ta' strangers?"

Danny places a hand on his chest in mocked offense. "I'll have you know, my sister taught me stranger danger," Danny tuts easily to the lighthearted change in mood, "I guess it just never really got through to this thick skull."

Ember laughs and nudges Danny with her elbow. "You tell me, I've already been hearing tales in the Ghost Zone of a certain ghost going feral at them and kicking butt. And from a ghost not even dead just a few months ago."

The song finishes, dying down with the final strum of a C sharp, and the quiet crickets become much more prominent. The stars are out with the absence of clouds, and Danny can see Orion's Belt. But where the stars used to bring over a calmness, it still did, but it left behind a sobering thought and a tight pull in his chest, as if it was mourning something.

"Got something on your mind, babypop?" Ember asks, as if reading his thoughts. "You may be half alive, but you got the problems of a half dead ghost. I may not know stuff about halfas, I do know a thing or two about teenage woes."

Danny picks at the latex glove and doesn't look away from Orion's Belt. "I don't know Ember. It's probably stupid."

"Try me," Ember insists, "You listened to me and it helped, and now I owe you."

Truthfully, talking about it was complicated to Danny. It's not that it's stupid really, it's just how would you explain a halfa problem to a fully dead ghost?

"Before I.... 'died'," Danny tries, his eyes tracing the sky to find the next constellation, "I could see ghosts. And before I realized they were even ghosts, I was a freak to everyone. I mean yeah, I don't blame e'm. Some weird kid pointing at blank spaces and saying something's there constantly can get on your nerves. Funny at first but the same jokes, even if it's not one, gets tiring real easy."

He manages to find Lepus not far from Orion. 

"I was different. And sure the adults say different's good! Unique and all, don't stick to the mold! But it scared people away, and I didn't want to scare people away. So the easy way was to hide it, and I did."

Gemini is a little hard to find with some dull stars, but he traces it out, and he fixes his stare on the brightest star of its constellation; Pollux.

"And you know what? It worked. I separated 'ghost life' from my regular life. Hang out with my friends, leading my life, and keeping my ghost adventures separate. It was funny you know, back then. A lot of it consisted of finding things and doing chores now that I think about it. But I was helping ghosts out here and there- I mean besides that.... Nasty Burger incident.... and it made me happy. Like I was part of something bigger. And I was doing an incredible job hiding it."

Cannis Major was exceptionally bright tonight, though not as bright as the other two. But that is to be expected. 

"But being Phantom..... Being half ghost. God."

He no longer searches the stars, but instead invests in finding stray dirt marks on his latex feet.

"Before Phantom, I was about as normal as any other kid, even with my ghost eyes. I was still human. I wasn't afraid of my parents. I could dream. I could believe that one day, I could go to space, and watch earth from the moon. And then I went and fucking zapped myself with ectoplasm and half died. Not a human, not a ghost. My parents hunt and hate the very thing I partially am. And then when my grades started to fall and I kept getting into trouble at school I just-..... I figured my obsession with protecting Amity Park and my territory-.... I don't even know if I can think about dreaming anymore."

"At least before Phantom, I could keep both things separate easy. Now I struggle with Cs and can't even get one day of good sleep. I can't keep up, and it terrifies me. What if one day, I have to tell someone I care about the truth? What if one day, I have to pick one or the other side? What if one day, I can't keep the two separate and I-.... I no longer have control over my own life."

Danny rubs the heel of his palm over his eyes if only to get rid of the growing blur and stares at Ember.

"How do you live when you're half dead?"

Ember meets his eyes with a blank stare, with her brows furrowed with a mild frown. Danny starts to believe that Ember really doesn't understand and he feels like crawling into a cave for basically spilling his guts like a teenager in a truth or dare challenge. (If Jazz were here, she'd go on about how its okay for boys to talk about their feelings and express themselves and that stuff.)

"First off," Ember begins, "wow dude. That's rough buddy."

Danny had expected Ember to not be an emotional conversation type of person and rolls his eyes, but Ember doesn't so much as acknowledge the eye roll and continues. "Secondly. I'm about to take the page off that ol' timey ancient ghost and I quote 'Life's unpredictable, and more often out of your control'. "

Ember kicks her legs against the metal bars and begins plucking at the strings of her guitar again, aiding her thought process. "When I died, I thought it was so unfair. How I left without even scratching the surface of my dream. And how everyone else that ever hurt me got to move on, have lives, kids, family, dreams come true. Heck, I still get upset when I think about how it could've been. But, you know, it happened. And people will move on with or without you."

"If I held on to that, I'd sink even further and never move. When you talked to me, I realized I couldn't stay and wallow in my self pity and went off to figure myself out. Met all sorts of ghosts and humans alike, made some alliances and acquaintances, and I figured out what I wanted. And right now, I don't plan on changing the course anytime soon."

When Danny gives Ember a slightly confused look, Ember huffs and places a hand on his shoulder, "Look, all I'm saying is right here, right now, you're Danny. A Fenton and a Phantom. Half human, half ghost. Even though it's gonna be hard, even though you can't always predict what will happen a day, a week, a month, a year from now, and even though there will inevitably be times where shit gets tough, you have people, and dare I say, ghosts right now that care about you. That'll stick by you either for now, or till' death actually do you part. You'll gain and lose things and people. That will be then, and you'll eventually meet and find new ones. But all you need to know is, in the end, it'll be okay."

Ember gives Danny a soft smirk and grips his shoulder in assurance. "You're still the same Danny that likes to help anyone, ghost or not, and even if your life changes, even if you change, you'll still be the same. Just a little different. And that's fine."

For the first time in a long while, Danny lets out a breath he never knew he was holding.

"Wow," Danny breathes, "That must've been the most smartest and inspirational thing I've ever heard from you."

Ember flicks her finger at Danny's forehead and earns a yelp from Danny. "Sage Ember advice is as rare as it comes so you better have fucking held on to that."

He ponders over Ember's words for a while. "If you actually were okay with... you know.... How come you're still here and not in heaven or whatever comes after?" Danny asks, to which Ember answers with a cocky grin. "Still got an obsession I'd like to fulfil. Besides, I wanna enjoy Earth, fame and glory just a a little longer. So I'm gonna be a pain your butt for a long while."

Her cocky grin soothes into a soft smile and she tilts her head a little in inquiry, "So, did it help?"

Danny shrugs, "I mean.... I sorta don't really get some things. But I also got some things. So yeah, I feel better." 

He looks back up at the stars and the pull in his heart no longer bothers him as much as he is used to, for the F chords of an electric guitar ground and remind him of other dreams and hopes that fuel his own childhood's. "I'm a Fenton and a Phantom. Half Ghost and Half human. The same.... Yet different..... And I'm not alone to face this. Now and for a long while."

Tonight, he is next to a long time ghost friend, looking at the stars, and relishes in the fact that today had been great day. One among many others before and after tonight. And he holds onto that hope that he will have another day as great as this, enough hope to pull him through the tough days.

Danny may be a half ghost, an unknown, but he has always been a little different than the other kids. He, afterall, has ghost eyes from the day he was born.

He can manage just fine.

**Author's Note:**

> The "same yet different" quote and idea indeed came from Adventure time, because no one can rephrase it any other way and they did it beautifully.


End file.
